Of Horses and Gods
by Lily Argetfricai
Summary: A horse can have many names, an extraordinary horse even more, and yet how many horses would answer to the name of the trickster God?


**AN: **This is a case of wanting to find a story to read and when it isn't there, writing it. It's just that I spent a whole portion of the movie wondering who Captain Nicholls reminded me of and when I looked it up, it was Tom H. aka Loki. And you have a nice blond Loki and horses, this fic practically wrote itself. There are quite a few references to norse mythology (I cannot think about Thor without them) even if they are not really cannon complaint (because you cannot give birth to an eight legged horse and still think you are as). BTW as is the singular for aesir.

Read, enjoy and review.

**Of Horses and Gods**

The human colt kept insisting on him being Joey, and there was nothing the horse wanted more than being able to say "Yes, I know him, my name is Joey". But, was that really his name? Could his name be Pferd? wasn't he Francois, named after the boy who broke Emilie's heart? Wasn't he Prince? Or, could it be that he was Loki, the trickster who had wanted to play with humans for a while?

After all, most people thought that the first time Loki had been to Earth since the Vikings was when he lied to his not-brother and tried to take Mjölnir. Those people were utterly mistaken; Loki had been on Midgard once during a story about loyalty, love, stubbornness and war. During that time Loki was going by the name of Nicholls, Captain Nicholls.

That was a magnificent horse, anyone could see that. The forty guineas were a completely fair price, if this were Loki he would pay with gold from Asgard, but Nicholls could not afford such a high price, not during war. The humans had found themselves in yet another war, but not even the trickster god could imagine how this war was going to play out.

With all the lies and half-truths Loki was known for, he never made empty promises. Besides, the kid, Albert, he looked at the brown horse as if he was his friend, his son. The Captain could understand loyalty and commitment, the God could understand how it was that you could feel for a horse what you were expected to feel for your own (ás, jotun, human, it never made much difference). Thus, Nicholls promised the human kid that he would take care of the horse, better than if he were his own (because we all know how that story ends). The blond haired man saw the heartbroken look in the kids eyes, hidden by the betrayal directed towards his father, he tried not to see things that were from another life, another world in that look, not the heartbreak at seeing Svaðilfari go, or the betrayal when Sleipnir was used like a common horse.

Here in the English army, Nicholls felt right at home. Battle strategy was a highly priced skill and no one frowned for long at a sharp tongue when it was followed by a smile. The liesmith knew that information was knowledge and could help you win a war. And information was what the English were missing when they charged right into the German camp. Nicholls felt the power of the animal between his legs and the power he and his sword had over the still asleep German soldiers. The Captain almost didn't notice at first the guns that were killing men and horses all around himself, it all happened so fast and before he knew, a bullet was making its way into his heart.  
It is very difficult to kill a God, especially one as slippery as the God of mischief and fire. However there is very little to be done when you are avoiding Hemindall's all seeing gaze. Thus, Loki did the only thing he could, abandoned the dying body of the man who had once been Nicholls with one last breath, before introducing his conscience alongside Joey's. Because, it is very difficult to kill a God, but this particular God had not tasted Idunn's apples in a very long time and the body he was wearing had gotten injured.

Whilst it was not the first time Loki had worn a horse's skin, last time he had been the mare, not shared body with such a wild and strong animal. The God could feel Joey's panic and fear, taste the wind and death all around them and hear the Germans talking about killing the horses. No! This time it was also Loki who feared, he was too weak to move to another body, he couldn't die, and he had made a promise to an English kid named Albert that he would return his horse safe and sound.

Joey feared for his friend, he knew that wearing the harness was not so hard if only Topthorn could understand. It was the trickster who guided the horse through his memories, leading him to help his friend and saving both their lives.

Things were a blur after that, horses don't have a very good measure of time and Loki had nowhere to record the passing days. Languages blurred and most times it was Joey who responded instinctively to people, Loki spent too much time trying to discern intentions. There were the brothers who made Joey's heart clench in an unfamiliar way. There was the little girl who talked to them as if they were human, and whose life was fading away every day. There was the nice German man, and the mean one, where Joey and Loki tried to save their mate who was not really a mate and failed. And after that, there was only loud noise and pain.

The once silver tongued ás tried his best to distance himself from the valiant animal's mind feeling that the end was near when help arrived in the form of two enemies that in other circumstances could have been friends. They cut away the wires that were pressing against their flanks while a lullaby in an unknown language filled Joey's mind.  
Meeting the human colt Joey and Captain Nicholls had once known was unexpected and yet, the part of Joey who was still a hidden God was overwhelmed with happiness, he ha managed to fulfill the promise he had made to a kid who reflected the hurt and betrayal he had once felt. Maybe it was the way a horse's senses are different from a human's but it seemed as if Albert was different from the last time he had seen him, but Joey's mind also felt what Loki could express with words.

Loki didn't leave the horse's body as soon as they reached familiar English soil, he couldn't really. After living through so much together, their minds had intertwined. Leaving Joey's body would mean killing him, and Loki could not do that to the friend he had made that reminded him of his once mate and at the same time not, he could not do that to the man who loved his horse so much he had gone to the end of the world for him. It was only after several long years, which the liesmith had learned to count by the births and deaths all around him, that the miracle horse who had survived through the Great War gave his final breath.

Once in Asgard, in an as body modeled after the Captain who had bought Joey for much less than he was really worth, Loki let himself cry all the tears he had not been able to shed. Tears for German and English soldiers, tears for French and English farmers, tears for friends, sons and mates. The trickster cried himself while swearing to never forget the miraculous horse he had almost been.


End file.
